Journal

Father and daughter post. Hi peoples.

Yesterday was Maddy's tenth birthday. She has reached double digits. I am under orders to mention this, and then to hand over the computer to Maddy (who also typed the "Hi Peoples" in the title). Right.

...

Hello. This is a message from Maddy Gaiman. No, please stop clapping. I do not deserve a standing ovation. Yes, thank you. Goodbye. Goodbye. I see no reason to talk any more. Farewell good friends.

...

And with that she's climbed onto the bed with a Betty and Veronica Digest and is lost to the world.

i am a 17 year old from portchester, England and have read american gods, i heard that you were from portchester and i just wondered if this was true or not, please reply

True as daylight. I was born at 44b White Hart Lane, Portchester, above a tiny grocer's shop owned and run by my family. I didn't stay there very long, though: we moved to Portsmouth -- to Purbrook -- when I was about six months old. (You can read about it, allowing for fiction, in VIOLENT CASES and in MR PUNCH.)

Hello I recently purchased your book Neverwhere. was fine up to page 116 when I found that another book had been inserted. Remember Summer by Elizabeth Lowell. continues to page 165 leaving me with a large hole in the story. Let your publisher know please as I am not pleased atall. Maureen McKeeWith pleasure, but they'll only blame the printer. Your best bet is to contact the shop you bought it at and ask them to replace it, and they will. They always do.

Anyway, at least you noticed. There are probably people out there who think that the middle of Neverwhere is about as postmodern as things get.

Neat that you let us travel with you across the globe.
This web site is a nice place to keep an eye out for you. Jet lagged?

I just want to thank you because I wrote a letter to Dave Sim and I have received today a signed copie of Cerebus with a letter of Dave. What is incredible (for me) is that I am french and he send it to me in France. So it was not a joke.
Thank you and thank Dave for me (he has written a little word in french in order to show me that my english was not so bad).
Do you know how many letters he has received ? Am I the only foreigner who has written a letter to him ?

Merci beaucoup Neil.
I love your works.

Didier

PS: Do you know if we, poor frenchies, will have a chance to see Mirrormask one day (in english or in french) ? Say yes please!
PPS: Same question about the Neverwhere DVD.

I don't think anyone knows whether or not Mirrormask will be released theatrically around the world yet, not even Sony. But I'm sure it'll eventually come out in France on DVD, if nothing else.

The US DVD edition of Neverwhere is not Region Encoded, so you can buy it and watch it wherever you are. I have no idea why it isn't region encoded, but it isn't. So you can certainly get that in France.

People in the UK and Australia have also written in to let me know they've got their signed Cerebuses as well.

They also write to say things like this:

Dear Neil,
Taking advantage of the Dave Sim Cerebus offer, I wrote a letter to Mr. Sim saying that I wanted an issue as a present for my fiance, a fan of his work. You see, I wrote, we're getting married in September, and we're so hard-pressed to save up for that expense that we've decided that this year for our birthdays we're getting a wedding and nothing else. A box arrived today with two signed "Women" graphic novels. Not issues, graphic novels. One was signed to my fiance, the other to me, both with inscriptions saying, "Just in case it doesn't work out, there's no need to have the autographed 'Women' trade in the community property list. Here's one of your own." They were signed by both Dave and Gerhard.

Worrying (yet funny) inscription aside, I'm trying to say what a super guy Dave is! He actually *read* the letter and did a little something special for us, complete strangers. --Shannon

and

UPDATE TO THE ONGOING DAVE SIM EXPERIMENT:

Neil here is a transcription of Dave's letter to me (just arrived today).

Please note the PostScript.

Regards,

dethbird(Rick)

------------------------------------------------------

12 August 04

Dear Neil Gaiman blogophile:

I regret to inform you, that owing to the chaotic happenstance which is the international postal network of which Canada Post is a randomizing full participant, your request for an autographed copy of an issue of Cerebus containing part of the Sandman parody (the full parody is available in Cerebus volume 8 Women)(see attached) arrived today.

The reason that I regret to inform you of this is that-had your letter arrived yesterday along with the other four that came in-you would now be reading a personal reply from me. Unfortunately yours came in this morning along with 212 others, and so you are reading a form letter. And what's more, you don't even get the rather lengthy form letter that the 110 people whose inquiries arrived on Monday will be receiving, because it's already early afternoon and I've only had time to open and read the International inquiries and it looks as if it will take the better part of the day to open and read the U.S. and Canadian inquiries.

The best laugh so far Joey C.: "I'm sincerely hopeful that a signed Cerberus in this case refers to your version on paper, rather than a large three-headed dog. Even though my fianc�e would like a puppy, I expect a three-headed one would be more than we could handle."

Most charming: Karen B. in Wollongong NSW writing a six page letter by candlelight in the middle of a winter power blackout.

Sincerely,

Dave Sim

PS: Please notify your fellow cyberspacepersons-wherever it is the you (sic) congregate-that they are welcome to post any of my personal or form letters to any Neil Gaiman/Sandman forum to keep everyone up-to-date on how the experiment is coming along. I forgot to mention that in my first form letter. And don't forget to tell Neil, as well. He's apt to feel left out, otherwise.

Hi Neil. Ok, here is your head scratcher for the day. I live in Toledo, Ohio and several year ago I worked a five year stint at Barnes & Noble. This would have been around 97. Our store manager had come from the Ann Arbor, MI branch on Washtenaw. She told me that there was a "comic book writer" that frequented the cafe there and she thought it was you. Ok, so, none of my damn business, but I have always been curious about this for some reason. Did you own a house in Ann Arbor? This affects me not at all. It will not change my daily life. I will not feel empty or full but for some reason unknown to me, I would like to finally put this to rest. Thanks so much Neil. Take care. Can't wait to see Mirrormask!

Nope. Not me, I'm afraid.

What's odd is that none of the "was that you?" messages that have come in have ever been me. I wasn't the mysterious man on the bus in Ireland, or the mysterious hitchhiker claiming to be me in Scotland, or any of the others. Unless I was some kind of tulpa, of course.

Which reminds me:

Amazon.ca says the mass-market paperback of your "Untitled Collection" will becoming out in late 2024.

Maddy just went off, used one phone line to call herself on the other, answered the phone, and had a long and utterly convincing conversation with her brother Mike about the DVDs that she got for her birthday, then handed me the phone, and went off into delighted hysterics when I tried talking to him. I think she needs attention. (And the repeated suggestion that I "post it now and get off the computer" is, I think, another hint that I'm done for this afternoon.)